Harry Potter & the Baptism by Fire
by DarkLordPotter16
Summary: Harry, broken by Sirius's death, decides to run away, traveling to the various wizarding communities on the earth. Follow Harry as he travels the world and trains himself for the upcoming war against the Dark Lord. And as he bonds with some of the most unexpected people. HP/DG; story is canon up to OotP; no horcruxes or hallows


**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter**

**This is my first fan fiction, so please bear with me**

**I read a couple of reviews telling me to organize my chapters differently, so I've decided to combine two of them:)I've also edited and changed out a few words**

Today was a rather humiliating day for the Ministry of Magic. They were forced to exonerate the late ex-fugitive Sirius Black, due to unbeatable evidence suggesting he was falsely imprisoned. More humbling however, was that the recently disgraced ex-Minister, Cornelius Oswald Fudge, had been impeached by the Wizengamot and sacked from the highest office in Wizarding Britain. A few of his highest ranking advocates in the wizarding equivalent to the British Parliament, were revealed to have been Death Eaters and were arrested. Among them, were Lucius Malfoy, Walden Macnair, Nott, Avery, and Crabbe. Their arrests had sealed Fudge's fate and forced him into a humiliating early retirement. As soon as the old codger walked out the door, names were being thrown out to replace him. Among those mentioned, the two frontrunners were Amelia Bones, head of the DMLE, and her subordinate, Rufus Scrimgeour, the famed Head of the Auror Office.

"I call for a vote," bellowed one rather elderly member of the esteemed body. As soon as it was stated, a handsome man, likely within his late-thirties, with dark brunette hair and brown eyes stood up and smoothly stated "I second the motion."

"Very Well. All those in favor of Mister Scrimgeour for Minister of Magic, please raise your hand," stated the recently reinstated Chief Warlock, Professor Albus Dumbledore. Around thirty to forty members raised there right hands. "Thirty-nine for Scrimgeour," the court scribe Percy Weasley counted.

"Now all those in favor of Madame Bones," Dumbledore said, before raising his own hand. A clear majority had voted for Bones and after Percy was done counting, he finally stated "Sixty-one for Bones." There was a round of applause for the newly elected Minister, who graciously shook her subordinate/opponent's hand. He would end up being promoted to her job.

"Speech...speech!" several members bellowed.

Madame or rather Minister Bones went down to the podium to give her acceptance speech. Throughout her oratory, she made three key promises.

"Firstly, I will cease the massive Ministry regulation and interference at Hogwarts. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry had been successful long before the Ministry even existed. Last years lack of proper Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons could cause some serious damage down the road. People's lives could be put in serious peril if the Ministry attempted to interfere at the school. We could have gotten people killed because of our stupidity and reluctance to face facts." There was an uproar of agreement among the members of the High Court. Some were even calling for Umbridge's head on a silver platter.

"Secondly, restore the office of Minister of Magic to that of a respectable leader and not one of dishonor and abuses of power. I will not be feeding lies to the tabloids in order to sell my message, nor to attack people I may feel threaten my political standing. " There were several members clapping rather excitedly at that.

The third and final pledge caused the most upheaval. "And finally, we must prepare ourselves for the escalation of the conflict with the Dark Lord. We must send envoys to our allies, increase Auror recruitment levels, and banish the dementors from Azkaban Prison to ensure those isolated there have the least possible chance of reentering the fight," she finished to a thunderous applause. After a year of stubbornly refusing to see the truth, the Ministry was finally acting against the threat of Lord Voldemort. Some feared however, that it may already be too late.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the city of Surrey, in southeastern England, the sky was pitch black, save for the crescent moon providing a moderate amount of light. At the home of Number Four Privet Drive, which, to an outsider, looked perfectly normal, with nothing out of place. The home was occupied by the moderately successful Dursley family, with the husband/father Vernon, the wife/mother Petunia, and their rather large son of seventeen-year-old son, Dudley. However, during the summer, there was a fourth occupant of the seemingly normal home.

In the third upstairs bedroom, there was a young boy. This boy was considered quite odd among the residents of Privet Drive. He was rarely seen in the day and when he was seen he did not speak to anyone and just went about doing the chores his Aunt and Uncle assigned him. He was rather skinny and a mysterious scar on his forehead. What was very odd were his striking green eyes. This boy had the look of an, old, weary man in his eyes. The look would remind people of the look soldiers had as they returned from war. Little did anyone know that this fifteen-year-old teenager had just suffered from the terrible heartbreak of losing the closest thing to a father he had ever known.

'It's all my fault,' Harry Potter thought to himself quietly. 'If only I had not been so gullible…Sirius would be alive…'

It all started at the Battle of the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic. Voldemort lured Harry and five of his friends into a trap. It was all part of a plan to discover the contents of a prophecy, a prophecy that would have explained the connection between Harry and Voldemort. Harry felt severe guilt for what had happened to his friends. Ron was only starting to recover from his encounter with the Brains; Hermione was still taking potions for what that bastard Dolohov did to her. Ginny had drastically hurt her ankle, and Luna and Neville were recovering from less serious injuries. What hurt the most was that Sirius had been killed. By the hands of his own cousin no less.

At the thought of the recently escaped Death Eater scum Harry felt an intense anger. 'I swear I will kill her,' he swore to himself. Her being in reference to top Death Eater and pureblood fanatic Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry swore to himself he would avenge his godfather's death. He remembered chasing Bellatrix, with vigor in his heart, and one goal in sight. Revenge. It surprisingly felt satisfying that he had hurt her with the Cruciatus. As he looked into her black as night eyes, he saw fear. She was at his mercy, and the voice in his head, Voldemort's voice, egging him. It told him "You know the spell Harry...Do it!" Harry felt the beginning incantation of the curse on his lips, but then the headmaster appeared.

As his mind drifted to his ever aging headmaster...Dumbledore. Harry was still furious with him for his betrayal. Of course, he understood why he tried to protect him from the truth, but he could not help but feel bitter with the Professor. It was not his job to protect Harry from things he had the right to know. He still respected the old man, but the relationship between the two had been damaged and would need time to mend.

It was at that moment that Harry heard a pecking sound on his bedroom window. It was a gray barn owl with a letter. Harry looked at the seal. "Gringotts," Harry muttered to himself. Harry opened the envelope, took out the letter and began to read.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_We regret to inform you of the reading of the last will and testament of your late godfather, Sirius Orion Black. Your presence is requested at Gringotts Bank at ten o'clock, tomorrow. Also, once the reading is over, we will have to look over your own account and assets. Your parents friend, Remus Lupin has informed us he would be picking you up and escort you to the reading. He will be at your current place of residence a half hour before the reading._

_Yours Truly,_

_Griphook_

Harry stared at the parchment and reread it. He knew Sirius was of wealth, but was curious as to how much he actually had. Of course, he'd gladly change all the gold for Sirius back in a heartbeat, but seeing as that wasn't an option...

As his thought continued to drift back to his late godfather, he could not help but recall today's headline for the Daily Prophet...

**Sirius Black Posthumously Cleared of All Charges**

By: Terrence Jackson

_Today was a solemn affair as the Ministry of Magic was forced to acknowledge irrefutable evidence that pointed out that supposed Death Eater and mass-murderer, Sirius Black was in fact innocent of all charges. Black, aged 36, was reported to have been fighting with Harry Potter and his companions against a small Death Eater squad in the Department of Mysteries. Through various statements and eye-witness accounts, it has been confirmed Sirius Black had been dueling against his own cousin, recently escaped fugitive, Bellatrix Lestrange (née Black). This, along with the fact that Black never had a proper trial and that he seemed to have been helping Mr. Potter and company clearly point to the conclusion that Mr. Black was falsely accused. Also, a statement given by Professor Dumbledore in which he said "Sirius Black never betrayed James and Lily Potter and never killed Mr. Pettigrew or those poor muggles. If Sirius Black truly was a servant of the Dark Lord, he would have been fighting Harry, not with him." We also regret to inform you that Sirius Black died in his duel with his cousin, by falling backwards through a mysterious object only known as the 'Veil', in the Death Chamber of the Department of Mysteries. _(To read more flip to page 6)

The article only made Harry feel worse. 'If Sirius had survived...he would be a free man today,' he though bitterly.

Harry decided he should get to bed so he'd be ready for tomorrow. He fell asleep to images of Sirius falling through the veil. It was similar to being tortured over and over again. Harry remembered Sirius falling through the veil, Remus having to hold him back so he did not join Sirius in his fate.

Then Harry recalled the ice like grip of Voldemort on his body. He remembered looking into a mirror seeing himself. But the eyes...they were a demonic bright red and the hate consumed him.

Harry woke drenched in sweat with a startle. He quickly checked his clock which read nine thirty. He quickly showered and got dressed. Moony would be there any minute.

It was then that he heard a loud and distinctive 'pop.' He heard a loud, feminine shriek, and quickly ran downstairs.

Harry had to fight off the urge to laugh as he saw Dudley flat on his huge arse backing up into a corner, looking ready to scream bloody murder. Then Harry saw his father's old friend try to diffuse the situation.

"Now, now, there's no reason to be afraid, I'm just here to pick up Harry," Remus calmly said.

Dudley seemed he was going to wet himself and still tried to back up into the corner, even though it would have been difficult for him to fit in, considering his whale like frame.

"Harry it's good to see you," Remus said as he spotted his best friend's son.

"You too Remus...so I see you've met Dudley," Harry chuckled.

"Ah yes, the poor lad is still rather frightened, my apologies son," Remus said to Dudley, who still looked terrified in the corner.

"So, should we get going?" Harry asked. He wanted to get out of this miserable place as soon as possible.

"Oh yes, if you would grab my hand Harry," Remus said, holding out his hand to Harry.

"It was very nice meeting you," Remus said to Dudley, who finally fainted.

Harry just rolled his eyes at his slob of a cousin. With that, he grabbed Lupin's hand and instantly felt as if he was being squeezed through a very tight tube.

Harry never had apparated before, so the experience was anything but pleasant. As they landed in Diagon Alley, Harry needed to hold onto Remus to prevent from falling.

"Sorry, I should have warned you, apparition takes some getting used to," Remus said apologetically.

"It's fine Moony," Harry replied.

With that they began to move towards the bank. As Harry looked around he didn't see a ton of people. The alley wasn't as populated as normal, probably having to do with Voldemort's return becoming accepted. 'About damn time,' Harry thought to himself bitterly. The few who were there stared and gestured quietly at Harry.

As he and Remus climbed the steps, Harry couldn't help but feel a flurry of emotions. He had loved Sirius and may never get over the guilt, but maybe this could provide him with some much needed closure...

As they walked through the doors and passed the security goblins, they walked up to the front desk and were told to wait. Then a goblin came and asked them to follow him to a back room where Harry assumed the will was to be read.

As soon as Harry and Remus entered the small, conference room, they were both greeted by a rather large group of red-heads.

"Hey Harry," Fred and George said in unison.

"Harry dear, how are you my boy?," Molly Weasley asked worriedly in her classic motherly nature, while giving him her customary bone-crushing hug.

"I'm okay," Harry replied politely and slightly out of breath.

"Harry mate, how have you been holding up?," asked Ron with Hermione at his side.

"Been better...how have you guys been? I mean with your healing processes?" Harry inquired.

"Oh, well the headaches are starting to lighten up, I stopped acting all weird. I've had to take a head ache relief draught twice every day. Once in the morning, once at night. Overall, I think I'll be okay," Ron stated.

"That's good mate, you'll pull through just like always. So what about you Hermione?" Harry asked.

"I'm fine Harry. My next check up is next month. I should be almost done taking my prescription potions," said Hermione looking at him worriedly.

"I'm so sorry...to both of you. This is all my fault," said Harry in a distraught, pained tone.

"Harry, listen to me. We all consented. So please quit beating yourself up," Hermione said looking her friend in the eyes. Desperate to get him to understand.

"Yeah mate, if anything this means we need more practice if we want to kick some Death Eater arse," Ron joked half-heartedly.

Harry responded with what he thought was a small grin, which looked more like a grimace. His friends didn't seem convinced, but chose not to press the issue. As they began to find their seats after greeting the newly arrived pair, Harry and Remus continued on and took a pair of seats right in-between Hermione and Tonks.

As Harry looked around he began to see some familiar faces. There were a few Order members such as Professor Dumbledore and Tonks. Then his eyes fell upon a pair of two blondes. He felt his jaw drop to the floor and his nose crinkle in disgust. 'Malfoys, why in the name of Merlin would Sirius include them in his will?' Harry thought bewildered.

"Malfoy's mum was Sirius's cousin," Remus answered him. That was when it struck Harry. If Malfoy's mother was Sirius's cousin, that had mean she was Bellatrix's sister. He struggled with the desire to go over there and tell them off for their sick devotion to Voldemort. Harry was praying to God that Sirius didn't leave them anything. If he did, he would have directly financed Voldemort and that would be a tough pill to swallow.

That was when Harry noticed a group of five individuals on the other side of the room he did not recognize. The man, who Harry assumed was the patriarch of the small family, had dark brown hair and eyes. Then there was the woman. She looked rather pretty, with blonde hair and blue eyes. There was also a young girl, who could be no older than thirteen and an eleven something boy. She had dark brown hair with brown eyes, while he had dirty blonde hair with brown eyes.

Then his eyes fell upon **her.** There were so many words that came to mind when he saw her, but stunning was probably the best and most appropriate one. Her blonde hair was done in a plain ponytail, yet she somehow looked highly sophisticated with the look. She wore a black blouse and knee-length skirt which, as she was sitting down, showed off her gorgeous, slightly tan legs. As he slowly moved his gaze up her body his eyes fell upon her chest, which was by no means enormous or flat-chested. The only word he could think of was perfect. As he began to move up at her face he couldn't help bet feel mesmerized by her, wanting to take in every little detail. Her thin lips looked so soft and full. Her nose was petite and thin. Harry felt like he could continue to gawk at her magnificent beauty till the end of time.

Fortunately, no one around her had noticed him. 'Uh oh, spoke too soon,' he thought to himself. It was her sister who noticed him. She glared at him for a few moments before whispering something into the pretty blonde's hear. As she turned her head, Harry instantly thought to himself 's_hit_.'

It was as if everything was in slow-motion. As their her gaze met his, he found himself staring at the most beautiful feature she possessed...her gorgeous blue eyes. She was now looking directly at him. As he looked her in the eyes, he saw mild annoyance, which made his cheeks go red and want to look away. That was when he saw a hint of something else in there...curiosity. She was staring at him more intently now, as if she was trying to read his mind. They stared at each other for what felt like ages, but was more than likely to be a few mere seconds, before she reluctantly looked away towards her mother, who was trying to engage her in conversation. Harry immediately missed the feeling of staring into her blue orbs. He was longing to return to their little staring contest. 'Interesting,' Harry thought, 'I never felt that way with Cho...'

"Hermione, who is she?" Harry asked, still somewhat gawking in the direction of the beautiful girl.

Hermione followed his gaze over in that direction and analyzed the young woman Harry was eyeing. She turned back towards him with a raised eyebrow.

"Honestly Harry?" Hermione whispered, looking rather scandalized "you disappoint me. She's been in she's been in the same year with you ever since you were eleven and you can't even tell me you don't know who she his. You've even had classes with her for Merlin's sake."

"Yeah mate, even I know who she is," Ron butted in.

'Well that's humiliating,' Harry thought as he racked his brains, but he simply could not recall ever seeing that girl before. He was sure he hadn't ever seen her before because he would not have so easily forgotten a girl that beautiful.

"I'll give you a hint mate. That oh so charming piece of work over there is the 'Ice Queen' of Slytherin House..." Ron said sarcastically.

"The what? I meant what was her name?" Harry asked with a bewildered and slightly impatient look on his face.

As Ron groaned in frustration, Hermione, with a roll of her eyes, uttered the answer he'd been looking for "Greengrass, Daphne Greengrass."

* * *

As Harry continued to ponder Dapne Greengrass and how different she looked, he couldn't help but think about why she was here. 'Did her parents know Sirius' he asked himself.

"If you could all be seated, we shall begin momentarily," said Griphook. With that, another goblin brought out a small stack two or three pieces of paper, that Harry assumed was Sirius's will. He set them down on a table in front of everybody and all was quiet. Griphook waved his hand, with it's long fingers and sharp fingernails, over the stack of papers and a small white light aura appeared, covering the papers. They then flew up into the air and took the shape of a howler. However, Harry felt that this one would not be harsh or violent. Then Harry heard the voice that he hadn't heard since the fight in the Death Chamber.

"I Sirius Orion Black, being of sound mind and body, do hereby declare this collection of documents to be my last will and testament," said the howler in Sirius's voice.

"First and foremost, to Narcissa Malfoy and her son Draco, along with your sister Bellatrix, I do hereby as the sole patriarch and head of the Black family, disown you all, from the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black."

"WHAT?!" screeched Narcissa, while Draco was seething. "That traitor was disowned, he has no right!"

"Madame, I can assure you, Sirius Black was all but disowned from the family. His late mother, Walburga, died suddenly before she got around to filing papers with Gringotts, so Mr. Black was never officially removed from the will, and with his brother Regulus dead, he was the sole surviving male, leaving him as the rightful head of the Black family," Griphook stated with a stern, business-like look on his face.

The goblin's response only enraged the Malfoys further. Finally, after around fifteen seconds of Narcissa looking speechless, she grabbed Draco by the arm and left with a very unladylike string of words coming from her mouth.

"Well she took..." Fred started.

"That well," George finished.

At this everyone, even the Greengrasses chuckled.

"If we could continue?" Griphook said with a long drawl.

"I'm assuming lil' Cissy had a hissy fit. I hope the face she showed was priceless," continued the howler.

Again, everyone burst out into laughter.

"Also, I also reinstate Andromeda and her daughter, Nymphadora Tonks back within the ranks of the Black Family, allowing them full access to the family fault and so forth. To lil' 'Dora, be sure not to forget about our conversation about our friend and his 'furry little problem.' If you are truly serious, do not give up on him, he just needs a little push." Tonks looked sadly at the howler, with tears rolling down her face. No one noticed, Remus's hand grasp and hold onto hers.

"Moving on...to Fred and George Weasley, I, Padfoot, along with Moony, have decided to induct you into the Marauders. I wish you both the best with your joke shop and as the next generation of pranksters I know you'll be a beacon of light in the darkness that is to come. God knows we need people to keep us immature and laugh during rough times. With that I'd like to leave you all with an investment of 40,000 Galleons into Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes." It was one of the few times Harry had ever seen the twins act seriously. The twins looked as if they had sworn on their magic to cause chaos. It was sad that one of their inspirations, an original Marauder, had passed on. They promised themselves they wouldn't let him down.

"To Ronald Weasley, I would like to thank you for being there with my godson. Harry tells me you were his first friend and for that I am truly grateful. I know that there have been bumps in the road, but let me tell you something. Never let anything...nothing come in-between your friendship. There aren't many of those out there these days. To you I leave the sum of 25,000 Galleons and my motorbike, which you should be able to pick up from Hagrid." Ron looked shocked and sat there with a sad expression on his face. He was appreciative, but he would've gladly give all back to alleviate his best friend's suffering.

"To Arthur and Molly Weasley, along with any siblings I've failed to mention, for which I apologize. I owe you a debt of gratitude. You took in the only family I had left and he was welcomed with open arms as a son and brother. I know Molly and I had our disagreements, but I must confess I enjoyed her presence at my home. Stick together and love each other to the best of your ability. If there's one thing I know, time is short. Use it to love and be happy with each other. I have decided to leave you with the sum of 100,000 Galleons to be used at your discretion." They looked shell shocked. They'd never known such generosity in their lives. They'd be able to pull themselves out of poverty and were so grateful to Sirius for it. Most importantly though, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Ginny, being the only sibling not mentioned who was actually there, took that final message to heart and promised they'd follow it.

"To Hermione Granger, I would like to thank you one last time for what you did for me, saving me from the dementors. I truly meant it when I said you really were the brightest witch of your age. I have no doubt you'll achieve great things Hermione. You just have to keep your chin up and dismiss the insults inferior witches and wizards throw at you. I leave you the sum of 25,000 Galleons" and the entire collection of books within the Black family library. Make me proud kid." Hermione sat there with tears running down her cheeks and Ron doing his best to comfort her, holding her hand and rubbing her back.

"To Albus Dumbledore, I leave the estate of Number 12 Grimauld Place, with the sole condition that when the war was over, he will burn it to the ground." Dumbledore sat their quietly with a sad look in his eyes. There was no twinkle in them as most people had been accustomed to.

"To Remus Lupin, my fellow Marauder and brother, I'm sorry I won't be there with you during the full moon. You are now officially considered the last of the original Marauders. We had quite a run there for a while, but I suppose all good things must come to an end. I'll miss you buddy and I'll say hi to Prongs and Lily for you. Also, please get on with it concerning that secret lady friend. You deserve to be happy Moony. Finally, I leave you the total sum of 50,000 Galleons." Remus sat there feeling

"To Cassius and Victoria Greengrass, I'm sorry you're only now finding out about how I did not betray James and Lily. I swear if circumstances had been different you'd have known the truth sooner. I hope and pray you'll both forgive me. I wish your daughter well. I bet she has grown into a beautiful young woman, just like her mother. If you two have happened to have any kids I was unaware of at the time I was writing this, than I wish the same. I give your family a sum of 20,000 Galleons. I know you're already wealthy, but please consider using it to pay for your kids post-Hogwarts education. It's the least I can do. Now, with that out of the way, I've also decided to leave you with items of a more personal nature. I also leave you Daphne's godmothers' Wizarding Law Books. I recall you telling me long ago your child would be a lawyer "

"Finally, to my godson, Harry Potter...Harry, you were the son I never had. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you during the dark times ahead...but always know I'll be watching over you. I love you kid. I leave the remainder of the Black family funds that have not been distributed in this will, any remaining property or estate under my possession, along with Buckbeak, and the title as Head of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black." Harry sat stock still. He hadn't expected that. Though perhaps he should have. Sirius had no children, so it was probably logical to assume he would have made Harry his heir.

* * *

As the reading of Sirius's will ended, everyone began to file out, saying their various goodbyes with each other. Harry's eyes travelled to the departing Daphne Greengrass, who the last to leave. She quickly, turned her head and spared him a glance. Emerald met blue for a few moments. Harry felt naked in front of her, as if she could see right through him. He never felt so open and vulnerable. After she broke eye contact, albeit hesitantly, with him, Harry continued to look at her retreating form in wonder. 'I'm gonna have to get to know her,' he mused. He also noticed Remus staring cautiously at the Daphne and decided he would ask him why later. After almost everyone else left, it was just Harry, Professor Dumbledore, and Remus left...

**Dis****claimer: I own nothing; Also I need some ideas as to what types of places Harry will travel to...**

**So far we have**

**1. Russia**

**2. The Middle East**

**3. South Africa**

**4. New York City, USA**

**5. Italy**

**I'm not having him go to Japan or anything like that, this is not a Naruto fanfic or anything along those lines.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter**


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